An experienced pub operator has purchased the Jerrabomberra Hotel in Queanbeyan for a price understood to be in the mid-$20 millions.
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Harvest Hotels, which operates more than a dozen pubs in NSW and South Australia, will take over the hotel from mid-April.
Industry sources indicate the company paid about $25 million for the family-run hotel.
Affectionately known as The Jerra, the pub sits on about 2800 square metres of land opposite the Jerrabomberra Village shopping centre.
It includes 30 gaming machines, a bistro, sports bar and a drive-through bottleshop.
The Jerrabomberra Hotel was previously owned and run by a local family, its website states.
Harvest Hotels founder and managing director Chris Cornforth said the group had been shopping around Queanbeyan for several years.
"We've previously owned and operated in pubs in the nearby community of Yass so are well acquainted with the broader region, and in meeting all our required demographic metrics, Queanbeyan has been a target area of ours for a long time," he said.
The sale was brokered by HTL Property's Daniel Dragicevich and Sam Handy.
Mr Handy said the Jerrabomberra Hotel had all the features that "astute purchasers are drawn to".
"Exclusive catchment, high foot traffic positioning and ample parking are strategic trading cornerstones which enable successful trading longevity," he said.
It was the first purchase under the newly merged Harvest Pub Fund, which includes eight of the group's NSW pubs.
Through the fund, Harvest Hotels is looking to acquire underdeveloped pubs that have the potential to provide strong returns to investors.
Mr Cornforth said The Jerra fit the "Harvest mould well".
He said the group would launch a loyalty program and bring its partnerships program to the Queanbeyan community.
The Harvest Hotels portfolio includes the Milestone Hotel in Dubbo, the William Farrer Hotel in Wagga Wagga and Brady's Railway Hotel in Albury.
Pub sales in the Canberra and Queanbeyan region have been few and far between in recent years.
Most recently, the Kambah Inn sold for about $3 million to a local buyer.
The new owner has recently completed a significant refurbishment at the pub.
In 2022, a Newcastle publican snapped up the Tourist Hotel in Queanbeyan for about $14 million.
There are also plans under way for a brand-new $25 million hotel and function venue in Googong town centre.